


Travis and Travail

by asphaltcowgrrl



Series: Flowers in the Garden [12]
Category: Common Law
Genre: M/M, Mpreg
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-23
Updated: 2016-02-04
Packaged: 2018-05-08 17:05:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,692
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5505908
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/asphaltcowgrrl/pseuds/asphaltcowgrrl
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Mitchell-Marks family is expecting another blessed event but this time, it's Travis that's pregnant.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> I never, ever start posting until something is 100% complete. But, due to a few requests, I've decided to start posting this one now, while it's still incomplete. Bear with me because updating might be a little sporadic until it's complete. 
> 
> So, Kiki, JoiSilver, Brenda, Jayjya, Peaches15, and anyone else who has been silently cursing me... this is for you. Thank you all for always reading, whether you comment or not, it's appreciated. Much love through the holidays and into the new year.

Sutton looked from the blond to his duskier partner and back again.  “Let me get this straight,” he said, arranging his Zen garden as a way of distracting himself.  “After two babies, you guys are having a third?”  Both detectives nodded, slowly.  “And this time, this one’s pregnant?”

Travis looked at the floor and Wes simply looked embarrassed.  He had to admit that this role reversal had been a surprise to them both.  Not that Wes was complaining, he was still fighting to get rid of the leftover baby fat from his last pregnancy.  Over a year ago.

“I see,” Sutton murmured, shaking his head.  “You two shouldn’t work.  Not as partners, definitely not as lovers.  But, who am I to argue with the mysteries of love?”

Wes narrowed his eyes and Travis grinned. 

“You two are dismissed.  Just keep me abreast of the situation.”  Here he eyed Travis’ still flat set of six-pack abs. 

Both nodded and shuffled out of the captain’s office and onto the floor of the robbery homicide division.  “Gotta admit, I think that went better than expected.”

Wes turned a disbelieving face onto his husband.  “Really Marks?  Were we in the same room?”

Shrugging, Travis held out a hand.  “He didn’t yell.”

“Sutton never yells anymore.  Not since Dr. Ryan got her claws into him.”

“Point,” Travis conceded.  Dr. Ryan was, in fact, the only reason they were together so they couldn’t exactly ignore her deft hand in fixing relationships.  “But he only sighed twice.”

And that was the sticking point, Wes thought.  Therapy had worked miracles on Sutton’s anger management issues, but it hadn’t helped his penchant for sighing dejectedly every chance he got.  That the cap had only sighed twice during the entire fiasco of their current life story was a small wonder in itself.  “Okay, fine, it went better than we thought, but did you see his face?  I think he’s about two minutes from demoting us both to traffic duty.”

Travis gave a mock shudder and smiled at Wes.  “He wouldn’t do that to us.”

Maybe not, but he’d sure as hell have reason to.  When Wes had gotten pregnant with Violet, he’d done everything in his power to hide the pregnancy from everyone – including Travis.  Most especially Travis, truth be known.  To say that Wes had caused a little bit of chaos was putting it mildly.  Then Bryony happened and everything went to hell in a handbasket again.  Wes found himself on indefinite bedrest and Travis was forced to do all the heavy lifting in their professional partnership.  How they’d survived it all long enough to get married in the middle of it was a mystery. 

What the hell was going to go wrong now that Travis was carrying their child?

Wes gave Travis a sidelong look and frowned.  Probably not a damn thing – Marks would pull off being pregnant with charm and grace like everything else he did.  It was still early in his first trimester, but so far, no real signs of morning sickness had manifested.  He’d had one night of voracious vomiting and nothing of note since.  It was beginning to piss Wes off.  If Travis managed to keep the weight off and not blow up like a freaking balloon, Wes was divorcing him, just on principle. 

It was a selfish, awful, greedy thought, but he couldn’t help himself from thinking it. 

Giving his middle a discreet look, Wes confirmed that he still hadn’t rebounded fully from Bryony’s birth, and that had been some time ago.  Although Travis didn’t seem to mind – Wes himself had thought he was pregnant just a few short days ago – it still bothered the blond that he was carrying baby fat a year plus after the fact.

He made a mental note to hit the treadmill harder in the morning.  And yoga.  Lots and lots of yoga.  Wes had a feeling he was going to need as much mental clarity as he could summon in the days to come. 

One thing did bring a smile to his face, however.  He couldn’t wait to tell Jonelle.  The look on the medical examiner’s face would be priceless. 

“What’s so funny, buttercup?”  Travis was staring at him, those crystal blue eyes boring into his soul.

“Nothing, Travis, just thinking about how excited the girls are going to be.”  Which wasn’t exactly a lie…. If he didn’t admit to which girls he was meaning.  Because seriously, Kendall would be excited, but Dakota and Rozelle were going to be over the damn moon with the news.  Wes couldn’t wait to let them fuss over Travis for a change.

 

“Oh my god,” Dakota squealed, embracing Travis in one of her mega hugs.  “Really?  How long have you known?”

“Dakota,” Wes said, a grin lighting his face.  “Let the boy breathe so he can answer your questions.”

“Oh,” she laughed, giving Travis one last squeeze before letting him go.  “Sorry.”

“The girl doesn’t know her own strength sometimes,” Rozelle put in, sneaking in to give Travis a congratulatory hug of her own.  “She got Clyde in one a few weeks back and I thought his eyes were going to pop out of his head.”

“I still have nightmares about it,” Clyde whispered in Wes’ ear. 

Travis, however, was not deterred.  Instead, he puffed out his chest and played the proud papa.  Er, mama.  “Just a couple of weeks,” he said, grinning at the assembled therapy group.  “It’s kind of funny because we actually thought Wes here was preggo.  Turns out, we were wrong.”

Thank god for that, Wes thought.  He didn’t know what would have happened if they’d both been knocked up.  Well, Wes had an idea – he’d be carrying on as per usual while Travis played the martyred invalid, probably.  Maybe Travis would handle it better than that, but he didn’t hold much hope for it. Marks could barely cope with having a cold, so being pregnant was about to be an eye opening experience for his husband.  Good thing Wes had so much experience with the subject.

“Well this is an unexpected announcement,” Dr. Ryan said, bringing everyone’s attention back to the reason they were all gathered there.  “Shall we pick this back up after we have our group?”

Although Travis wasn’t outwardly showing any of the usual signs of first term pregnancy, the exhaustion had started to catch up with him.  Wes watched as his dark eyelashes fluttered closed over those beautiful blue eyes, Travis falling asleep despite Dr. Ryan’s lecture and the animated voices filing the room around them.  Catching Dr. Ryan’s eye, she smiled and shook her head, she knew Travis wasn’t being inconsiderate, he just didn’t have any choice in the matter. 

The topic for the group that day didn’t actually affect them much since it centered around the way extended family put a strain on a couple’s relationship.  Wes’ family was all out of sight, out of mind.  If pressed, he could say that it was all very civilized, but it didn’t matter.  They were all too wrapped up in their own lives to be concerned with his, which actually worked out for the best.  Travis’ family, on the other hand, was all over the place.  He had more foster moms and siblings than most people had socks.  In a lot of ways, that was stressful in and of itself, but the more he got to know Travis’ much extended family, the more he liked them all.  Even the ones working on the wrong side of the law.  Thinking about Money made him smile.

“Something you’d like to share with the group, Wes?”

Damn, Dr. Ryan had caught him being content again.  “No ma’am,” he said, allowing the smile to fully bloom.  “Just thinking about one of Travis’ less than respectable foster brothers.”

“Mmm?”  Travis blinked and pulled himself into a sitting position.  “What’s Money got to do with anything?”

“Funny how you knew who I meant, considering you were asleep, Marks.”  Wes patted Travis on the shoulder.  “He has nothing to do with anything, but they were talking about in-laws and I thought about Money.”

“That’s an odd connection to make,” Travis said, a yawn cutting his words off.  “Are we almost done?”

“Yes, Travis,” Dr. Ryan said, nodding at him.  “I think we can all go a little early today.”

As soon as the words were out of her mouth, Wes and Travis were flooded with questions.

“When’s your due date,” Mrs. Dumont questioned.

“Are you hoping for another girl,” Dakota practically demanded.  “Violet and Bryony are too precious for words.”

“How many times has blondie threatened to strangle you so far, Travis?”  That, of course, was Rozelle, always asking the important questions in group.  More than likely, she was remembering all the drama Wes had brought with him during his first pregnancy.  Heaven only knew, Wes had deserved to be smothered in his sleep on more than a few occasions back then. 

“None so far,” Travis teased, throwing a wink in Wes’ direction.  “But give it time.”

“Whatever,” Wes said, adding an eye roll for good measure.  It was something Violet had down pat and used regularly to make her point.  “Can we go home now and get the girls?”

“Of course, baby,” Travis said, holding out a hand.  “Help me up?”

Wes took Travis’ extended hand between both of his and helped haul his much larger built husband out of the chair.  He wasn’t sure how he was going to manage this in a few months, but he figured he could rely on Peter or Clyde to help him in a pinch.  Or even Dakota.  The woman was stronger than she looked.

 

“Are you hungry,” Wes asked, pulling out of the community center’s parking lot and pointing the car towards home.

“No,” Travis sighed, rubbing his still perfect belly.  “But I know that if I don’t say something now, by the time we get home and you feed the girls, I’ll be starving.  That’s always what happened with you anyway.”

It was true.  And, on the flip side, he’d forced Travis to make more than one emergency detour due to Violet demanding red meat at the most inopportune times.  Thank god for Fatburger.  “Mmm…”

“What?”    Travis looked up from his abdominals and made a face at his husband.  “You okay?”

“Yeah, just… thinking about a burger.”  He didn’t want to admit to any more than that. 

“I could definitely eat a burger,” Travis agreed.  “Gotta be a Fatburger.  No goddamned onions though, right?”

Wes couldn’t stop the laughter that bubbled up out of him.  “Right.  No goddamned onions while pregnant.  Although now that you mention it, yeah, grill some up and throw them on.”

“All I’m concerned with are some skinny fries right now, but you can keep your damn onions.”

“I guess it’s a burger night,” Wes said, taking a left and heading towards the nearest Fatburger.  Bri was going to make a mess of herself, but he had faith Violet would demolish hers and raid everyone’s fries.  She was too much of her father’s child to do anything less.  But that’s okay, sometimes predictability was a beautiful thing.  “You think Violet will share her cheeseburger with her sister,” he asked, hoping he wasn’t going to have to share his with Bryony.

“Are you kidding me?”  Travis laughed before patting Wes’ leg.  “She’s my girl and we both know that I don’t share my food.”

“No you don’t, Joey.  No you don’t.”  As much as he wanted to be angry, he couldn’t find it in himself to be.  “So, one small burger, one medium burger and I’m assuming you want a large, as per usual?”

“You know how I like my meat, baby.  Big and fatty.”

“That’s just… gross,” Wes said, making a face.  “No matter how you look at it.  So that’s a yes?”

“That is affirmative, baby.”

It was going to be quite a night, if Travis’ mood was any indication.  As they approached the drive thru window, Wes suddenly changed his mind and decided to forgo the onions after all.  There wasn’t anything sexy about onion breath and no amount of toothpaste and mouth wash could quite cover it, either.  As a consolation, he splurged and went for extra relish.  Pickle breath was a lot easier to tame in the long run. 

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the delay in posting... the holidays rather had their way with me. But, in other news, IT IS FINISHED so there shouldn't be anything keeping me from regular postings now.

Wes lifted his eyes from the file he’d been studying and looked around.  He could have sworn he heard something out of the ordinary.  Not finding anything, he shook his head and went back to reading the details on the string of robberies he and Travis were getting set to start investigating. He was three-quarters of the way through the first page when he heard it again.  Yeah, that was definitely an unhappy groan of pain.  Scanning the living room, he saw Bryony asleep on the floor next to her sister.  Violet, on the other hand, was sitting on her heels and making her stuffed tiger take a Barbie on a date.  He hated to think himself a kill joy, but there wasn’t any chance that relationship was going to last.  Tigers and blondes were a combustible combination. 

So who – or what – was making that god awful racket?  Closing the file, Wes put it back inside his briefcase to keep it out of the reach of a certain crayon-happy child.  He stood and made a circuit of the area – living room, kitchen, and front entrance.  Still not finding anything capable of making that kind of pitiful sound, he strode down the hall to see if there was an animal trapped in the girls’ playroom.  Not that they had any pets of their own, but there were a few neighborhood cats that ran wild and occasionally found their way into the Mitchell-Marks household.  He and Travis both regretted ever teaching Violet how the doorknob worked. 

After giving the laundry room, the playroom, and the girls’ bedroom the all clear, there was only one place left to check: the room he shared with Travis.  Pushing the door open, Wes stepped inside and found Travis sprawled diagonally across the bed, clutching his belly.  A belly that had only just barely started to round outwards with the beginnings of a baby bump.  Marks’ legs were bent at the knees and his eyes were squeezed shut, a look of utter discomfort and pain on his handsome face.

Panic flared in the pit of Wes’ stomach and spread outward at the speed of light.  “Travis,” he said, rushing to his husband’s side. “Travis, are you okay?  Is something the matter with the baby?”  After everything Wes had gone through when carrying Bryony, he wasn’t about to discount any little ache or pain Travis might be experiencing.  Having wound up on bedrest for the last half of his own pregnancy, he’d learned to pay attention to even the tiniest of symptoms. 

“Wes,” Travis sobbed.  “I’m so miserable.  My back hurts, my feet are swollen, and I’m… I’m fat!”

“What?”  All the fear that had been building fled his body, leaving Wes feeling a little weak and off balance.  “All this moaning and groaning and theatrics is because you’ve put on a couple pounds?”

Travis pushed himself up onto his elbows so he could glare directly into Wes’ face.  “A couple pounds?  I’ve gained four, Wes!  Four!”

Four lousy pounds.  Wes stopped counting how many he’d gained once he hit thirty at the halfway point with Bri, so he had no idea how much he’d actually gained. What he did know is that some of it was still lingering many months later.  He covertly eyed Travis' long and lean body, not noting an ounce of fat lingering anywhere but directly where their new addition was growing.  “Maybe you should lay off the donuts, honey.”

Travis’ eyes narrowed.  “After all your cravings that I indulged, you say that to me?”

Great, now he’d really fouled it all up.  “That’s not what I meant, Travis, and you know it.”  God only knew, Marks had fed all of Wes’ cravings during his pregnancies.  And even a few he didn’t realize he was having.  “All I was saying was if you don’t want to gain a lot of weight – like I did – then you need to pay attention to what you eat.  That’s all.”

“Aww,” Travis cooed, struggling all the way up into a sitting position.  He held his arms out and motioned for Wes to join him on the bed.  Wary, Wes settled himself against Travis’ side and waited.  “Baby, you know I love you, your little baby roll and all.”

Wes slapped Travis’ hand when he pinched said baby roll.  “Stop it, you know how much I hate that.”

“Yeah,” Travis agreed, nuzzling his nose against Wes’ neck.  “I do, but it only makes me love you more.”

“Why?  Because you know no one will want a pudgy Wesley?”  It really and truly was one of his biggest fears – that the enduring baby fat would make him undesirable to everyone, but mostly Travis. 

“No, because it’s proof of your love for me,” he said, nipping at an exposed bit of shoulder.  “You gained all that weight carrying our babies, you know.  And speaking of your love for me, where are the girls?”

“Right here, papa,” Violet announced from the opposite side of the bed.  Two blue eyes peeked over the top of the mattress. 

“Of course she is,” Travis muttered, making Wes laugh.  “Where’s your sister?”

“Papa,” Bryony added, toddling her way around the bed until she was within an arm’s length from Wes. 

Reaching down and lifting their younger daughter off the floor, Wes grinned at his husband. “So, why were you wondering about the girls’ whereabouts again?”

“Never mind,” Travis muttered darkly, pulling Violet off her feet and into his lap.  “We can talk about it later.  But first, we need food.”

“Food,” Bryony echoed. 

“I hungry too, papa.  We eat now,” Violet added. 

It was funny how quickly Travis went from sickly preggo to attentive father.  But Wes wouldn’t ever say a damn word about it if only because he was such an amazing father to their two little girls.  He had begun to wonder if this new baby-to-be would change things, shift the dynamic so to speak, but every time the worry crept into his brain, Wes pushed it right back out again.  They could deal with it later, once the baby was here and they knew for sure that it needed discussing.  No need to stir up trouble where there wasn’t any. 

One thing wouldn’t ever change, however, and he had mixed feelings about it every minute of every day.

“Mama,” Violet said, falling out of Travis’ lap and into his arms.  “Hold me.”

Yeah, that was the one thing that forever remain the same, no matter how hard he tried to change it.  Although Wes had managed to come to terms with being ‘mama’ to these two little blessings, it still irked him to no end.  Wes couldn’t wait until this new baby started calling Travis mama.  He suspected that Marks’ reaction would be very similar to what Wes’ had been back then when Violet had first uttered the word.  But then, with Wes’ luck, the baby-to-be would pick up in his or her sisters’ bad habits.  Oh well, he was already mama to two, right?  What’s one more?

 

Travis waited until he heard Wes close the door to the girls’ bedroom before calling out.  “Baby?  You busy?”

“No,” Wes said, coming into the living room with a stack of children’s books in his hands.  “What do you need?”

Putting on his best pout, Travis looked up at Wes.  “Rub my feet?  They’re killing me tonight.”

Wes made a face.  “Are they clean?  Because, you know…”  The blond made a show of pinching his nose with one hand and waving the other in the air.

“You’re such a jerk,” Travis said, unable to sound even a little bit mad.  It was totally the kind of thing he’d have said had their positions been reversed.  “Of course they’re clean.”

“I’d rub your feet even if they smelled,” Wes chuckled, tossing a pillow at Travis so he could sit down on the couch.  “Give me whichever is the most swollen.”

Marks lifted a foot and set it in Wes’ lap, leaning back along the couch so that he was comfortable.  He hated using Wes for such non-erotic domestic duties, but damn, his feet hurt.  From what he remembered with Wes, it was only going to get worse as they went along, too.  “I don’t remember your feet swelling like this.”

“They did, just not as much,” Wes said, kneading the sole of Travis’ foot with his fingertips.  “But I also watched how much salt I sucked down unlike someone I know.”

“If the baby wants French fries, the baby gets French fries,” Travis defended.  God only knows, Bryony got more than her share of burgers and shakes. 

“Sounds more like Mama wants fries,” Wes muttered, a soft smile playing on his lips. 

“Don’t call me that,” Travis demanded, frowning.  He knew it made Wes insane to be called Mama, and he finally was beginning to understand why.  Maybe he shouldn’t have made so much fun of his husband?  Nah. 

“Now you know how I feel,” Wes said, giving Travis’ ankle a squeeze.  “Switch feet.”

Obeying like the good boy he was trying to be, Travis lowered one foot and rested the other in Wes’ lap.  “That feels incredible, thank you.”

Wes grinned.  “You did enough questionable things for me during my pregnancies, it’s the least I can do to return the favor.” 

“You’re amazing, Wes.”  Travis pushed himself into a sitting position, something that was becoming more and more difficult every day.  Although he was only twelve weeks into this thing, he knew that before long he was going to need a little help.  That was going to be rough because one thing he’d learned growing up in foster care was that you never asked for help unless you absolutely needed it.  Coming across as needy was a surefire way to get sent away.  Not that it had ever happened to him, he’d been lucky, but still, Travis had heard stories and they’d scared him.  “And I love you.  I don’t tell you enough but –”

“But I know all the same,” Wes finished.  “Just keep coming home and being amazing with the kids.  It’s all I need.  Actions speak louder than words.”

Leaning forward, Travis managed to brush his lips across Wes’ cheek, earing himself a giant smile in the process.  “Are the girls asleep?”

“They are,” Wes said, helping Travis lower his other foot to the ground.  “Any particular reason why you’re asking?”

As if blondie didn’t already know.  Travis had thought it an anomaly when Wes’ sex drive quadrupled during his pregnancies, but once the morning sickness had arrived and then officially worn off, Travis found himself in the same predicament.  Continually horny.  Any other time in his life, he might have relished this feeling of insatiableness, but now, when he was carrying their child, it seemed out of place.  Like he shouldn’t be having these desires.  Wes had assured him it was natural and healthy and they regularly acted on his needs, but sometimes, he still felt guilty.  “Not really.”

“Liar,” Wes laughed.  “Come on, you sex-crazed maniac.  Let’s go to bed and get frisky.”

The smile that had wooed a thousand women was now trained directly on the one man who had stolen his heart.  “I thought you’d never ask, buttercup.”


	3. Chapter 3

Travis had hit the sixteen week mark four days ago and his few bouts with morning sickness were now hopefully gone for good.  He was well aware of the fact that this pissed Wes off, but Travis couldn’t be bothered to care much considering how much his back hurt these days.  “Damn,” he muttered.  “How do women do this over and over again?”

“Not just women,” Wes muttered, squeezing between Travis and the wall. 

“Right,” he said, having somehow forgotten Wes had already done this before.  Twice.  The first time, he’d refused to even tell anyone he’d been pregnant.  “Wes baby?”

“Yes?”  Wes wandered back towards the bathroom, tie in hand. 

“How did you do this the first time?”

Wes shrugged, looking a bit uncomfortable.  “I had you, it was easy.”

“No you didn’t,” he argued, reaching out and taking hold of a pale wrist.  “Not at first anyway.  You were kinda far along by the time you fessed up.”

“Oh,” Wes said, his face clearly stating the fact that he’d been trying to forget that he’d lied to Travis for close to the first half of his pregnancy.  “Yeah, okay, so that’s true.”

“Tell me then, how did you manage to cope with all this crap on your own?” 

“I didn’t feel like I had a choice,” Wes confessed, hopping onto the bathroom counter.  “You didn’t remember sleeping with me and I couldn’t bring myself to tell you.  I was terrified of being rejected so I did what I had to do.”  He reached out and traced a line down Travis’ barely there baby bump.  “It was so much easier once you knew, even if you didn’t know it all right then.”

Travis considered all this, trying not to let the shock and heartache he’d experienced back then overwhelm him.  Wes had had it much harder then than he had it now and yet, it still sucked.  “You’re a better man than I am, blondie.  I would have smacked the crap out of you and screamed, ‘look what you did to me’ at the top of my lungs.”

Wes laughed.  They both knew this to be true because Travis was not the most patient of men, nor the most understanding either.  “I can totally see you doing that, too, Marks.  But that’s okay, I love that you’re able to just get it all out there instead of hiding it like I do.”

Coming to stand between Wes’ knees, Travis wrapped his arms around the blond’s neck and kissed his left dimple.  "We are who we are and there’s nothing we can do about it.”

“So, there’s no chance of me tamping down the dramatics over your pregnancy then?  Damn,” Wes teased. 

“Shut up,” Travis laughed, giving Wes’ shoulder a gentle shove.  “I have not been dramatic.”

“Oh no?”  A blond eyebrow quirked up.  “What about that fit you pitched in the store the other night when I said you couldn’t have both containers of ice cream?  A lady down near the Lean Cuisines said she thought it was one of the kids crying at first, not their father.”

“Well,” Travis hedged, feeling fully stupid for his reactions, but he couldn’t help it.  The baby wanted what she – he? – wanted.  And that night, the baby had wanted chocolate ice cream and lime sherbet.  “Okay, so maybe I’ve had a dramatic moment or two.”

Wes snorted.  “If you say so, honey.  But just remember, it’s only going to get worse before it gets better.”

“Yeah, yeah, yeah,” Travis said, waving it all away.  “So you keep saying, but I haven’t seen proof of it yet.”

 

Six days later, Travis got his proof. 

Wes came home from the dry cleaners and as he was hanging his suits in the closet, the sound of sobbing caught his attention.  Cocking his head to the side, he listened.  Determining it wasn’t either Violet or Bryony, he was less concerned until he realized it was Travis that was crying.  He hung the last suit and left the bedroom.  His better half was curled into a ball on the couch, giant tears streaming down his face. 

“Travis,” he said, placing a gentle hand on Marks’ shoulder.  “Are you okay?  Why are you crying?”

“This stupid asshole,” Travis choked out, “he left his dog out in the rain and then –”

Wes couldn’t help it, he laughed.  “Oh baby,” he said, settling down on the couch next to Travis.  “Come here.” 

Sniffling, Travis curled into the curve of Wes’ body, fitting himself against the blond in a way that made them believe they were two halves of the same whole.  “I don’t know why I’m crying, Wes, but I can’t stop.”

He smoothed his hand across the top of Travis’ head.  “It’s okay,” Wes assured him.  “This is what I was talking about when I said it was going to get worse.  Just wait until you’re trying to pick out an orange and start bawling over the fact that they’re out of season and none will work for the salad you’re making to go with dinner.”

“That never happened,” Travis said, disbelief thick in his words.

“Oh yeah,” Wes said, feeling idiotic all over again at the memory, “it sure did.”

“You never told me, baby.”  Travis sat up, wiping at his eyes with a sleeve. 

“No,” Wes admitted. “I was too humiliated to tell anyone.”

“Aw, you poor, sweet thing,” Travis said.  “Thank you for not making fun of me.”

“Never,” Wes promised.  “Although, later?  After this baby gets here?  Don’t count on me not relating these stories to everyone we know.  And before you threaten me, let me remind you that you did exactly that to me after Vi was born.”

“You were too cute,” Travis conceded.  “I couldn’t help it.”

“Mama,” Violet said, coming to stand before them, Bryony close on her heels. 

“Yes, baby?”  Wes held out his arms and she climbed into his lap. 

“Papa’s ‘motional.”

Wes laughed again, laughed so hard his stomach hurt.  “Yes, baby, he sure is emotional.”

“Why?”  It was fast becoming Violet’s favorite word. 

Good question.  Wes looked at Travis, silently asking if now was the right time to tell them the news or not.  Travis shrugged, probably as uncertain as Wes.  “Well, Papa’s having a baby, Vi.  You and Bri are going to have a brother or sister soon.”

“Nuh-uh,” Violet stated, sliding out of Wes’ lap.  She took Bryony by the hand and looked over her shoulder at her parents.  “You’re nuts, Mama.  Papa doesn’t have the babies, you do.”  The big fat ‘duh’ went left unsaid, but heavily implied. 

Violet tugged on her sister’s hand and stormed out of the living room.  “Let’s go play, sissy.  Mama and Papa are bein’ weird again.”

“Well, I’ll be damned,” Wes muttered. 

Travis, in response, cackled hysterically.  “Yeah, that went better than we expected, didn’t it?”

He couldn’t deny the fact that he’d expected more than a little dramatics out of Violet, but outright denial hadn’t even been on his radar.  Bryony, he knew, wouldn’t have an opinion because she was just too young.  If anything, Bri’s reaction would be based more on Violet’s response to the news than anything she actually felt herself.  To be honest, Wes wasn’t sure if he should be concerned by Vi’s disbelief or not.  “Better ask Dr. Ryan,” he muttered.

“About what,” Travis asked, snuggling into Wes’ side.

“Huh?”  He hadn’t realized he’s spoken out loud, but it was probably for the best that he had.  “Oh, I’m a little concerned by Violet’s dismissal of your pregnancy.  I’m not sure if I should be worried or not, but maybe we should ask Dr. Ryan about it at the next group meeting.”

Nodding, Travis agreed.  “I’m sure it’s nothing, but it can’t hurt to make sure.”

It was settled then.  They’d ask and hope for the best. 

 

“So, how are the little ones taking the news,” Dakota asked the second she saw Wes and Travis come through the door.

“Well,” Wes began before being cut off by Travis.

“Oh, they’re taking it wonderfully,” Marks interjected. “So well in fact, that Violet’s scoffing at the fact that I’m even pregnant.  Says that’s his job, not mine.”

Rozelle chuckled.  “That sounds like your child, Travis.”

“Aren’t you worried,” Peter asked.  “I mean, I think I would be.  What kind of a shock is it going to be for her when you actually have this baby and not Wes?”

“See, Travis,” Wes said, eyeballing his husband.  “This is what I was worried about.”

“Pffft,” Travis said, waving off all their concerns.  “I refuse to be worried until Dr. Ryan tells me I should be.”

“That’s not exactly the role of a therapist, Travis.”  Dr. Ryan had reentered the small yoga studio that housed their little gatherings twice a week.  “What seems to be the problem and why aren’t you worried about it?

Shrugging, Travis pointed at Wes.  “He told the girls about the baby, which I know we needed to do, but –”

“But Violet said that Travis couldn’t have a baby because it was my job,” Wes interrupted.

“I can see why she might think that,” Clyde said, nodding at Wes.  “You were the one who did the last two times.”

“I understand that,” Wes began before he was cut off by Travis.  “But –”

“But she’s still little,” Travis said, rolling his eyes at Wes.  Blondie worried about everything.  He did this long before they ever got together and had Violet.  Things had only escalated since that moment when Wes discovered he was preggo.  And god help him, but Wes had gotten steadily more concerned about every tiny thing since Violet was born.  “She might be upset at first, but she’ll get over this before long.  Baby Vi wasn’t even the least bit affected by Bryony’s arrival.”

Dr. Ryan was making a face and it was the face that told Travis he was being an idiot. Again.  “While most of what you’re saying is true, Travis, you don’t want her to continue believing that you aren’t pregnant.  Before long, she’s going to notice the changes in your body and start asking questions.  If you aren’t honest with her now, and allow her to continue to believe that you can’t be the one having a baby, it’s only going to make things more difficult when the baby does arrive.”

“Could it lead to tension between the children?”  It was a rather astute question coming from Dakota, a normally happy-go-lucky sort of woman. 

“It very well might lead to some sort of resentment of the new baby by Violet.” Dr. Ryan turned to Wes and focused on him.  “How did Bryony take the news?”

Wes scrunched his nose up in that adorable way that always made Travis want to pinch his cheeks.  “She seemed unaffected for the most part.    I’m not sure she understands what’s going on.  Violet, however, has been down this road before.”

Dr. Ryan nodded.  “How old is Bryony now?”

“About fourteen months,” Travis said, drawing the doctor’s attention back towards him. “Why?”

“She is still pretty young,” Dr. Ryan agreed.  “But keep an eye on her and how she acts towards both Violet and yourselves.  She’s at an age where she can’t express herself as well as her sister so any confusion, frustration, or anger will come out in other ways.”

“So, keep watch for any unusual behavior?”  Wes rubbed his fingers across his chin.

“Yes, and pull her aside anytime you see her acting oddly.  Don’t scold or punish her, unless she’s done something that could hurt her.  Be sure to talk to her and reassure her, however.”

“Understood,” Wes said, nodding.  “What about you, Travis?”

“Got it,” he said a feeling of dread building in his belly.  If something was bothering Violet, she came right out with it so that everyone on the block knew that so-and-so at the park had taken her favorite toy without asking.  She was so much his child that sometimes he worried for her future. No one would ever take advantage of that child and, if they tried, they’d suffer the consequences.  Bryony, on the other hand, was too much like Wes.  She internalized everything, even at a year old.  It worried him more that she wouldn’t act out at all and then one day, he’d come home and find a baby doll in place of his real child.  Not that he thought Wes or Bri harbored any sort of psychopathic tendencies, but still, neither one was very good when it came to expressing their feelings.  He was going to have to make sure to keep an extra close eye on that one. 

“You sure,” Wes asked, resting a hand on Travis’ arm. “You look a little worried.”

“Nah, I’m good,” Travis lied, sending up a silent prayer that it would all work out in the end. 

“If you change your mind,” Dr. Ryan said, “I’m always here for you.  All of you, anytime you need me.  Understood?”  Everyone nodded and Emma smiled.  “Good, shall we start today’s session?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to mention that this is unbetad so, if you find a typo or some other glaring error, let me know. Either in a comment or via my e-mail which is on my profile page. Thank you!


	4. Chapter 4

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay so forgive me - I found a glaring error and had to fix it. DOH. After two kids of my own, you'd think I'd know things by now.

Travis stirred and stretched, searching the darkness of the bedroom for whatever had woken him up.  His eyes scanned the perimeter of the bedroom he shared with Wes, looking for anything out of the ordinary.  Finding nothing, he moved to the edges of the bed, hunting for a familiar pair of blue eyes.  Shortly after he and Wes had disclosed the upcoming baby with the girls, Violet had taken to crawling into bed with them at approximately a quarter to two every morning.  But there wasn’t any Violet by the bedside, big eyes begging in the moonlight.

So what the hell woke him up? 

Chiding himself for being an irrational fool, Travis settled back onto his pillow.  He had been reaching for Wes’ warm body when he felt it.  Travis’ outstretched hand stilled, then, when the weird fluttering came again, his fingers flew to his belly.  Wait, was that?  No, it couldn’t be.  But, what if it was?

“Wes,” he whispered, shaking the blond’s shoulder gently.  “Wake up.”

Muttering, Wes rolled over and pulled the covers up to his chin.

“Sleepyhead,” Travis grinned, shaking Wes’ shoulder again.  He gave it a little extra oomph this go ‘round.  “Come on, baby.  Wake up.”

“Mmmm,” Wes murmured, turning onto his back.  “What’s the matter, Travis?  You okay?” 

Travis watched Wes rub his fists against his eyes, trying to contain his excitement.  He could flip out and be over the moon in the morning when the girls were awake, but for now, he had to rein it in.  “I’m fine,” he said, “but I think I felt the baby move.”

“Oh,” Wes sighed.  “It’s about time.  I was beginning to worry something was wrong.”

“Wait, why?”  Travis scrubbed the palm of his hand across his chin.  “Better question, why didn’t you say anything?”

Wes stretched, fingers reaching for the headboard.  “I didn’t want to worry you.  Every pregnancy is different and you’re a lot more active than I am generally.  I figured that if you didn’t’ say something in the next few weeks, I’d suggest you ask the doctor.”

Travis’ hand rested lightly on his belly.  “But I’m feeling her now, right?”

“Or him,” Wes reminded Travis.  “It’s a weird, fluttery feeling right?  Like butterflies on steroids in your belly?  Yeah, that’s the baby.  Took me days to figure out what I was feeling.”

A smile crossed Travis’ face.  “Yeah, it woke me up and I couldn’t figure out what was going on.  Does being active do something?”

Holding out his arms, Wes motioned for Travis to come snuggle.  “No, not in the way you’re thinking.  But the baby’s more active when you’re resting.  You’ll notice it more later, as the kid gets bigger and you’re more inconvenienced by all those little movements.”

“Like Violet’s infamous feet to the ribcage move,” Travis asked, grinning.

“Or Bryony’s forehead to the spine takeout,” Wes laughed.  “It won’t be long and you’ll get to experience all the glories of motherhood, Travis.”

“I can’t wait,” he said, only half meaning it.  Truthfully, the longer this went on the more terrified he became.  As fascinated and excited he was, there was always the lingering hint of terror.  What if he did something wrong like forget and have a beer instead of orange juice with dinner?  Or if he flopped too hard on his belly in the pool?  The what-ifs kept coming and coming and sometimes, they kept him up at night because he had no answers.  “How did you do this,” he whispered.

“You just take it one day at a time,” Wes mumbled, half asleep.  “Stop worrying, you’re doing everything right.”

“Thank you baby,” he said into Wes’ shoulder, snuggling down for what he prayed was a few hours of sleep.  “I just wish I was as certain as you are.”

 

“Mama,” Violet announced, making her way into the kitchen.  “Papa got fat.  What you feed him?”

Snorting, Wes stopped chopping celery and turned to his daughter.  “First of all Violet, that’s not a very nice thing to say.  Second, I’m not feeding him anything different than before.  Your Papa’s having a baby, that’s why his belly has gotten so – um, bigger.”  Wes barely escaped saying ‘so big’.  He’d made that mistake the night before and the results hadn’t been pretty.  Had he been that emotional?  Probably so. 

The little mini-Travis folded her arms across her chest and cocked her hip out to the side.  Violet’s attitude was more than he could handle some days and he feared for her teenage years.  “No. He’s not having baby, Mama.  Only mamas have babies, Dakota told me so.”

Oh good lord.  Wes knew Dakota was only trying to help, but their situation was FUBARed to begin with.  His having gotten pregnant only further fouled things up.  Now that the mama genes had switched hands and Travis was the one expecting, Wes had no idea how to explain their relationship to anyone, their kids included.  “Yes, he is.  And while Dakota is correct, your Papa thought he would have the baby this time.”

That hadn’t exactly been how it happened, but Violet was not quite three years old yet and Wes didn’t think she needed all the details at that age.  He’d be hard pressed to tell her the truth at thirty.  Who would believe that one night of kinky experimentation between them had resulted in Travis getting knocked up instead of Wes?  Not him, that much was for sure.  But then, it wasn’t all that surprising since a completely drunken night had resulted in Violet in the first place.

 “No,” she shouted and ran out of the kitchen.

Sighing, Wes put the knife down and followed her out of the kitchen.  He found her crying in Travis’ lap, a look of utter confusion on his husband’s face.  It broke his heart to see Marks so off balance since he was the one Wes relied on to keep things together in times of insanity.  “She doesn’t believe me.”

“I see that,” Travis said, a small smile on his handsome face.  “What do we do?”

“How’s the baby this afternoon?”  Wes inclined his head towards Travis’ belly. 

“Quiet, but she was starting to get feisty right before the Violet terror came storming in,” he replied.

“Lay down on your back,” Wes instructed.  “Get Violet to lay by your side.”

Travis did as Wes asked, convincing Violet that nothing bad was about to happen.  After a bit of vocal volleying, they convinced their older child to rest quietly by her Papa’s side.  Wes climbed into bed on the other side of Travis and pressed his chest against Marks’ back.  Slinging an arm around Travis’ middle, Wes rested a hand directly over his husband’s belly button.

“What now,” Travis asked, amusement tickling his voice.  “Wait for Bryony to find us and pitch a fit because she wasn’t included?”

“Wrong child,” Wes laughed.  “Bri will just climb up with us and find a spot.  That one,” he said, pointing at Violet, “is the one who’d raise holy hell.”

“Good point,” Travis agreed.  “But the question remains: what next?”

“Just relax,” Wes said, beginning to rub circles on Travis’ expanding stomach.  “Let the baby figure out that you’re relaxing.  The only way to convince her is to let her feel the baby move.”

“Like we did with Bri,” Travis said, the memory lighting his eyes. 

“Exactly,” Wes said, closing his eyes and resting his head on Travis’ shoulder.

Wes wasn’t sure how long they’d laid there, half sleeping, half wakeful, when Bryony finally toddled into the bedroom, a sleepy expression on her face.  With the aplomb only a toddler could possess, she wobbled and weaved her way onto the bed, coming to rest with her head against Wes’ back.  She didn’t much care where she slept, as long as she could have contact with someone.  Mama’s kneecap was her usual go-to, but today, she curled up against his back like a cat. 

A subtle shift, then an abrupt movement on Travis’ behalf brought Wes back to wakefulness. Travis lifted his head and met Wes’ gaze, a giant grin on his face. “Hey Violet,” Travis said. “Wake up baby.”

Violet sat up and rubbed her eyes, looking at her Papa like he was nuts.  Wes woke Bryony as well and helped her move around to sit on the bed in font of Travis, beside her sister.  “Put your hands on Papa’s belly,” Wes told Violet.  He took one of Bri’s hands in his own and helped her put them in the right spot.  “Feel that?”

“Yeah,” Bryony breathed, eyes wide.  She moved to put her hands back on Travis, but hesitated at the last second, looking at Wes for permission.  At his nod, she tentatively pressed her fingers against his baby bulge and giggled with each movement.

Violet remained impassive.  She pressed her hands against Travis’ belly, his large, dark hand resting against her back.  For long moments, Wes and Travis watched her, waiting for the sudden outburst of anger or disbelief.  When none seemed imminent, Wes breathed a small sigh of relief.  Time passed and eventually those two young eyes, so much like the ones his husband possessed, turned on him, filled with wonder. 

“Papa’s having a baby,” Violet stated more than asked.  “I can feel the baby, just like with Baby Bri.”

“That’s right, sweetheart,” Travis said, pulling her small body against his.  “Just like with Baby Bri and before, with Baby Vi, too.”

Violet’s nose scrunched up in concentration, one of the few things she’d gotten from her Mama genetically.  “I not Baby Vi now,” she said, her face smoothing, eyes serious.  “I’m big sister Vi.”

Travis’ laughter was full throated and filled the room.  “That you are,” he said, looking at Wes and winking. “Your our big girl whose going to help Mama with Bri and the new baby, right?”

“Right,” Violet said with a sharp nod of her head, dark curls bouncing with the motion. 

“Good girl,” Travis said.  “Now where’s my little Bri Cheese?”

“Really, Travis,” Wes laughed.  “Of all the things…”

“What can I say, I’m getting hungry,” he joked.  Bryony crawled over to her Papa and fell against his side, curling into the warmth of her father and sister’s bodies. 

Wes looped his arm around Travis’ middle again, fingers brushing against Violet’s dark curls and Bryony’s cheek.  He never thought things could get any better than they had when he and Travis first became a family, but every day he was reminded how wrong he’d been.  This, the way they were right now, was as perfect as a moment could get.  The four – five – of them snuggled into a ball, drifting off to sleep, not a care in the world. 

Until the baby kicked and Violet swore.  “Damn baby hurt my belly.”

“She’s so dramatic,” Travis laughed, not helping the situation one tiny bit. “I don’t know how she even felt that.”

“Not nice, Vi-let,” Bryony said before Wes could scold her.  That only made Travis laugh harder. 

Perfect, Wes tried to remind himself.  Everything was simply perfect.  Violet was, Wes thought, Travis’ child and one thing he’d never been able to curtail was Marks’ swearing.  Oh well.  It could be so much worse than this.


	5. Chapter 5

“Why are we meeting on a Wednesday, Wes?”  Travis gave him a look over the top of their car, curiosity etched into every inch of that adorable face.  “The girls are up to something, aren’t they?”

Wes rolled his eyes and ducked his head inside the car.  He was four seconds from blowing the surprise and that wasn’t something he wanted to do.  “Why are you so suspicious?  Stop being a detective for one night and remember that sometimes plans get changed.”

“Even a set schedule we’ve been sticking to for three years now,” Travis deadpanned.

“Yeah, even that,” Wes said, poking his eyes up over the hood enough to make contact with Travis.  “Now get in or we’re going to be late.”

Although late is what they needed to be, because if they were Wes’ normal ten minutes early, he’d spoil the surprise anyway.  It went against everything in Wes’ nature, but he’d dallied for as long as he could without getting twitchy.  Despite that, they were on part to be three and a half minutes early at the rate they were going.  He had to admit that for the first time in his life, he was thankful for Travis’ argument. 

“Whatever, blondie,” Travis muttered, taking his spot in the passenger side seat. 

His belly had finally sprung loose and the baby had expanded his or her living space accordingly.  There was a tiny outward dent where a little foot or elbow was currently pressing.  Unable to stop himself, Wes reached over and traced a finger over the tiny appendage.  The baby squirmed and moved away from his touch, making Wes smile.

“Staaaahp,” Travis giggled.  “It tickles when he moves like that.”

Wes removed his hand and started the car.  “That sure you’re having a boy?”  Travis had refused all opportunities to find out the baby’s sex, so sure he was that he’d be the one to bring a boy into the family finally. 

“Mama says that the way I’m carrying is a sure indication,” he said proudly. 

He couldn’t say he was all that certain he agreed, having carried Violet in much the same manner – all out in front.  But he wasn’t about to ruin Travis’ fantasy because he had no proof otherwise.  Besides, what did it hurt to dream?  Either way, he knew he’d be happy just to have a happy, healthy baby and that Travis would eventually get on board with that, too.  Probably shortly after the first time he held his little one. 

They arrived at the community center exactly on time, making Wes wish he could kick himself.  Shooting off a text to Dakota, he received an immediate reply.

_It’s fine – we all knew your idea of ten minutes late would be exactly on time.  Bring the little mama in!_

Smiling, he tucked his phone away.  As much as he harassed that girl, she really did know him – and Travis – too well sometimes.  In this instance, he was grateful.  “Come on, Travis, let’s go.”

Wes got out of the car and walked around to the passenger side.  Opening the door, he leaned in and looked at Travis.  “You okay, honey?”

“No,” Travis said.  “They’re up to something in there and I’ll have no part of it.”  A dark hand moved across his belly, settling just below the crest of the baby bump turned mountain. 

“It’ll be okay,” Wes assured him. He held a hand out and Travis took it.  “I promise, nothing bad is about to happen.”

“You promise?”  Two big, blue eyes pleaded with him from inside the car. 

“I promise, Travis,” he said, giving Marks’ hand a little tug. 

“Okay,” Travis sighed.  “Pull, baby.  I can’t do this on my own.”

 

“Surprise,” the chorus of voices shouted as Wes pushed Travis into the yoga room ahead of him. 

“Shit,” Travis laughed, startled and excited at the same time. “I wasn’t expecting that.  Although,” he turned to Wes and glared, “I told you they were up to something.”

“I know,” Wes laughed, patting his husband on the shoulder.  “But for once, I was able to keep the secret from you.”

“Papa,” Violet called out from atop Peter’s shoulders.  “There you are.”

Laughing, Travis kissed Wes on the cheek.  “How did the girls get here?  I thought we left them with Mrs. Callahan?”

“We did, but it was a distraction.  Dakota sent Peter to pick them up while she, Rozelle and Mrs. Dumont decorated and got everything in place.  It was her idea to include Vi and Bri tonight.”

“I owe that girl a hug,” Travis said.

“You know you do,” Dakota said, emerging from the crowd with her arms open.  “We’re all so happy for you guys, you know.” 

Travis gave her a strong, firm hug, baby belly and all.  “Thank you,” he said, pulling back.  “And we’re both thankful for all you and Peter do for us and the girls.”

“It’s nothing,” she said, flushing at the compliment. 

Dakota’s hug opened a floodgate and before long, Travis found himself engulfed by the arms of every member of the therapy group, including Clyde and Mr. Dumont, oddly enough.  It amused Wes to no end watching two very non-touchy feely men give his overly affectionate husband a hug.  He really felt for Clyde who looked so uncomfortable that you’d think he was being given a rectal exam instead of a friendly hug. 

Dr. Ryan directed the handing out of presents as Wes had vetoed any of the usual, silly baby shower games in lieu of simple chatter and gossip.  He knew he was being a wet blanket, but Travis was really beginning to feel the strain of the pregnancy and the sooner they got out of here, the better.  All either of them wanted was to curl up in bed – with or without the girls – and get some well-deserved sleep. 

Dakota didn’t seem to mind so much, however. Instead, she directed her creative efforts into decorating the room and ordering the cutest, most appropriate baby shower cake he’d ever seen.  It was decked out in LAPD blue and gold with little violets and ivy dotting the border.  A big, happy ‘congrats Travis, Wes, and little flowers’ was iced on the top. 

The giving of the gifts was the most interesting part, however, because they already had everything they needed from Violet and Bryony.  With the exception of a handful of gender neutral outfits and blankets, most of the presents ranged from silly little stuffed animals to things neither one had ever seen or dreamed of before.  Baby wipe warmer, pacifiers sporting mustaches and badly maintained teeth, teething mitts because heaven forbid the kid chew on his fingers, and something called a pee-pee teepee. 

“What the hell are these,” Travis asked, half laughing, half ready to bolt out the door.  He held up the baby blue cone-shaped item decorated with cartoon mice.

“Well,” Clyde began.  “They’re for, you know…”

“He means,” Rozelle interrupted, “that you put them over your son’s boy parts so he doesn’t shoot you in the eye when you’re changing him.”

Wes made a face, and he felt it coming, but he couldn’t stop it.  “Can’t you just cover him with the diaper?  That’s what I do with the girls.”

“Boys are… different,” Mrs. Dumont said, the voice of experience.

“We don’t even know for sure that this is going to be a boy,” Wes protested.

“But he could be,” Travis reminded him with a grin.

“True but…”

“But better safe than sorry,” Dr. Ryan added, a big smile on her face. 

From there it only went downhill, but in a good way.  The cake was cut and found to be Travis’ favorite – chocolate with vanilla buttercream – and passed around.  Because Travis and Wes were the guests of honor, no one was policing Violet and Bryony in their cake eating.  By the time Wes had rounded them both up, they were covered head to toe in frosting and crumbs.  Deep blue smudges of sugar on their hands and faces.  While Wes was scrubbing his daughters in the community center’s bathroom sink, Travis was making the rounds, getting the attention he so desperately craved.  The attention he didn’t get with Wes out on the beat and himself stuck behind a desk. 

Wes had been there – twice – and he knew how much it sucked to be the one left behind.  Travis had been a trooper, however, and hadn’t complained much.  He managed to keep it mostly to ‘I missed you’ and ‘when are you coming to get me’ comments at the end of the day.  But Wes could see it in Marks’ eyes – the loneliness, the betrayal, and it killed Wes to leave him behind every morning.  Soon, that would all change.  Although Wes would still be leaving him every morning, he’d be leaving him at home.

With all three kids

It was evil, but he’d have Dakota to help him.

Okay, so it was still evil, but he had little sympathy, having been the one mostly responsible for the girls’ care over the last few years.  Not that he wouldn’t help, of course he would, but it’d be nice to see a tiny shift in the home dynamic, even if it didn’t last. 

“You about ready, baby?”  Travis’ eyes were ringed with dark circles, the telltale sign of a mother done with her pregnancy. 

“We can leave anytime you’re ready,” he said.  “Bri’s already gone.”

Wes held out a finger and Travis smiled at his little girl knocked out in Peter’s lap, thumb in her mouth.  “Violet’s not far off, either.”  He nodded in the direction of Dr. Ryan and found their little mini-Marks nodding off in Emma’s arms. 

“As grateful as we are for this wonderful party,” Travis said as he stood, “I think it’s time we get the little ones home and into bed.”

“And mama here, too,” Wes added, winking at Travis.  “But seriously, we really are lucky to have such a good group of friends.”

“Aww,” Dakota cried, leaping to her feet and wrapping her arms around both Wes and Travis.  “You guys deserve it.  You work so much harder than any of the rest of us.  Someone should do something nice for you sometimes.”  She let them go and patted Travis’ belly.  It might be the last chance she got since he was due in a few short weeks. 

Retrieving their children, they carried them out to the car and loaded their sleeping bodies into their respective car seats and buckled them in.  Pete and Clyde loaded the assortment of gifts into the trunk and locked them away.  One last round of hugs and they were off. 

Two miles from home, Travis rubbed his belly.  “Wes?”

“Yes, Travis?”

“Wes, I don’t feel so good.  My – my belly hurts.”

Wes flicked a worried glance at his husband’s stomach.  “Your tummy or your back?”

“My – wait, no, maybe it is my – aaaah.  Wes?”

The sound of pure terror in Travis’ voice was enough to put the fear of God into Wes.  Switching lanes and nearly clipping an elderly lady in a Volvo, he flipped a quick U-turn and headed back towards the way they’d just come, and straight to the ER. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Cliffhanger anyone?


	6. Chapter 6

Wes knew it was stupid to panic like this.  He’d been down this road twice and Travis’ labor very well might not be far enough along to do anything about.  Maybe they’d get sent home.  Maybe they wouldn’t.  But whatever it was, the look on Travis’ face was enough to make him do what he thought best.  Which is why Dakota had just left with the girls, and he and he was sitting and waiting on some kind of news.

They’d taken Travis back almost immediately for an assessment, figuring it’d be a quick in and out if the labor wasn’t real.  But so far, he hadn’t seen hide nor hair of either his husband or a doctor.  Wes was beginning to get worried, and that wasn’t something he was used to feeling.

Dakota texted him approximately every seven minutes, looking for an update and reassuring him that the girls were conked out and sleeping soundly.  That was about the only blessing of the evening at this point – that neither Violet nor Bryony was worried about their Papa or wondering about what was going on.  If they were lucky, which they rarely were, he could pick them up in the morning, bring them home and introduce them to their new little brother or sister. 

If that new little brother or sister ever decided to make an appearance that is. 

Although it felt like forever and a day, in reality it was probably closer to two hours before a doctor called his name.  Looking up, Wes desperately searched his face for any clues.  He was older than Wes, possibly late forties or early fifties with a kind face.  Soft chocolate eyes looked back at Wes, both reassuring and assessing. 

“Mr. Mitchell?”  He pushed his wire rimmed glasses back up his nose.

“That’s me sir, are Travis and the baby okay?”  Panic suffused him again in a wild rush, but he forced it back down into its cage for the moment.  Hear what the doctor has to say first, you can freak out later.

“Indeed they are,” he said, a wide, toothy smile spreading across his face.  “Father and baby are right as rain and you can go in and see them anytime.  They’ve been moved from the emergency department to a room in the maternity department on the third floor.  Ask the nurse at the reception desk for his room number, they’re expecting you.”

Relief flooded his body, weakening his limbs.  Wes fell back into his chair, unable to believe that the baby was finally here, after all they’d gone through.  He rubbed his hands against his face and sighed.  Pushing to his feet, Wes took the doctor’s hand in his own and shook it heartily.  “Thank you so much, doctor.  I can’t tell you how relieved I am to hear that.”

“That’s what your husband said,” he laughed.  “’Tell Wes I’m fine and to stop flipping out’ were his exact words.”

“That doesn’t surprise me at all,” Wes grinned.  Turning, he started for the elevator when a thought occurred to him.  Looking back over his shoulder, he asked, “Doctor?  What do we have?  Another girl?”

The doctor shook his head.  “No, you are now the proud owner of a little boy, Mr. Mitchell.  Good luck.”

“Thanks,” Wes said, running to the elevators so he could go see Travis and their new son.

 

Travis was propped on a pillow and eating ice cream when Wes burst into the room.  He set the spoon down in the bowl and looked at his husband, exhaustion etched on his face.  “Hey Wes, guess what?”

“We have a baby,” Wes grinned, pulling Travis into a tight hug.  “And a boy baby at that.”

Wes pressed his lips against Travis’, holding their mouths together for a long time before releasing with a smack.  “I love you so much,” he breathed.

“I love you, too.”  Travis reached a hand up to caress the line of Wes’ jaw.  He let it drop back into his lap when something occurred to him.  “Where are the girls?”

“Oh,” Wes laughed.  “I called Dakota once they took you back and didn’t send you right back out.  She said she’d keep them for the next couple days, no matter what happened tonight.”

“No,” he said, shaking his head.  This wouldn’t do at all.  “They need to meet their brother.”

“I agree.  I’m not sure when they’ll release you, but I plan on picking them up in the morning.  Besides, do you think Violet will stand for not being in the thick of it once she hears?”

“Not on your life, buttercup.”  It was true, too.  That kid had to be in the middle of any bit of excitement that was happening.  “He’s in the bassinet, if you want to see him and maybe help me decide on a name?”

“Of course I want to see him,” Wes said, peering into the clear plastic bassinet at the baby.  “But wait, we haven’t discussed names yet?”

“Nope,” Travis said, wiggling around in the bed until he was comfortable again.  “I think it must’ve slipped our minds.”

“No freaking idea how that might have happened,” Wes grumped, making Travis laugh.

“It’s not like we both don’t have demanding full-time jobs,” he said.

“Or two other children either,” Wes agreed.  He reached into the bassinet and lifted their son out.  Cradling him against his chest, Wes sat in the chair beside Travis’ bed.  “He’s perfect, Travis.  Just like Vi and Bri.”

“I love how pale his eyes are,” Travis said, thinking about how they were more grey than blue.  “The nurse said they’ll undoubtedly change, but I hope not.”

“They are gorgeous, especially against his dark skin.”  Wes trailed a finger down the baby’s tiny nose and looked up.  “Poor Bryony is going to feel like the odd child out, being the only fair-ish one in the bunch.”

“Nah,” Travis said, waving a hand in the air.  “It’ll take her half a minute to figure out that she’s like her Mama in every way imaginable.  Which is probably a good thing for both of you.”

“You’re awful,” Wes laughed.  “But I love you anyway.  What’s his hair like?  It’s it crazy curly like Violet’s?”

“Pull the blanket back and look.  You can re-swaddle him when you’re done since you’re so good at that.”  Travis hadn’t ever quite gotten the hang of swaddling, always being worried he was going to wrap the baby too tightly. 

“Huh,” Wes murmured, stroking his hair through the short strands of nearly straight, auburn hair.  “It’s mostly straight and just brown, not as dark as yours or Violet’s.”

“Nope,” Travis said, leaning over the side of his bed to get closer to them both.  “And oddly enough, I think he looks more like you than he does like me, baby.  Yet another good thing for our son.”

“And speaking of which,” Wes said, looking up from the child in his arms and meeting Travis’ gaze.  “What are we calling this one?  Rose, Flora and Daisy are out.”

“Yeah, I was thinking about that,” he chuckled.  “My first idea was Forest, but that’s a bit lame.”

“And overdone,” Wes added. 

“So, I started thinking about other things that you’d find in the presence of flowers and what do you think about Aspen?”

Wes nodded as he thought it over.  “As long as we never move to Colorado, it should work.”

“You can be such an ass, baby,” Travis laughed.  “But it’s okay?”

“Yep, it sure is,” Wes assured him.  “And for a middle name?”

“Grove?”

“Seriously, Marks?”  Wes shook his head.  “Try again.”

“You could help, you know,” he grumbled.  “How about Dale then?”

“Dale is much better,” Wes agreed.  “And I think it’s a nice name.”

“Finally,” Travis sighed, falling back against his pillow. 

“You’re exhausted,” Wes said, standing up and kissing Travis’ forehead.  “And I’m pretty worn out, too.  Get some sleep and I’ll come back in the morning with the girls.  Deal?”

“Deal, Mama.”

“You know, that word applies to you now, too.”

“Maybe,” Travis said.  “But they’ll never call me that, guaranteed.”  Wes was so much more maternally inclined than he was, it was only natural for the girls to go to him for the things a mother would normally provide.  He had no doubt that Aspen would do the same in time. 

“God help me,” Wes chuckled and left the room.

 

“Baby,” Bryony said, pointing at the new addition.  “Baby ‘mells, Mama.”

“Yeah, the baby probably needs a diaper change, Bri,” Wes said, taking Aspen from Travis and putting him back into the bassinet.  Sure enough, he needed a change and Wes provided it for him. 

Travis took the baby back and held him close to his chest.  “Thank you, blondie, but I could have done that.”

“Nuh-uh,” Violet said, pointing at her father.  “You stay in bed.  Mama take care of the babies.”

“Well, I guess I’ve been told,” Wes said, glaring at their oldest child.  “But she’s right in this case, Travis.  You did all this for me, so I can do it for you.”

“Even though you do all of this every day anyway?”

Wes shrugged.  “It’s a mother’s job, right?”

“And we all love you for it, you know.”

“I do,” Wes said, blowing a kiss to his husband.  With all three kids on his hospital bed, there wasn’t a chance he could get close enough to give him the real thing. 

Violet touched Aspen’s hair and then his face, taking note of all the similarities and differences between the three of them.  Occasionally, she’d list them off, just in case her parents hadn’t noticed.  “Baby’s eyes aren’t blue, Mama” or “Why is baby’s hair not crazy like mine?”  He didn’t look forward to explaining genetics to his three-year-old, but eventually he’d have to give her a basic rundown.  For now, he simply pointed out that she and Bryony weren’t identical, nor was he and Travis.  It seemed to satisfy her curiosity for the most part, because she occupied herself with telling Papa stories about their night at Dakota’s and playing with the baby. 

Bryony, on the other hand, looked a little lost.  She turned her wide, blue eyes on Wes and held out her arms.  He lifted her from the bed and plopped her on a hip, knowing exactly how she was feeling.  In time, they’d all adjust and it would seem like they were always five instead of four or three or two. 

Or simply one. 

He’d never be alone – or lonely – ever again and he had one stupid, drunken night to thank for it.  Even if something happened in the future to split him and Travis up, he’d always have these three little proofs of their love to keep him company.  Not that he planned on letting that jackass in the bed go without a fight.  Not ever, they’d come too far to give up now. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you to everyone for reading, commenting, kudoing, and generally being wonderful.


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